On the afternoon of July 4, Gia Lai Provincial People's Committee announced that Chairman Pham Anh Tuan had issued a decision to commend Nghia for his outstanding achievement in rescue operations.

Nghia, a resident of Group 10 in Chu Se commune, was recognized for his extraordinary rescue effort at Ben Mong Bridge in Ia Tul commune, Gia Lai.

At about 12:30 p.m. on July 3, while spraying pesticides on the Dam Bron field near the Ba River, Nghia heard frantic cries. He looked up and saw several children stranded on a small island in the middle of the river, surrounded by rapidly rising, murky water.

A nearby resident had attempted to reach them but failed due to the powerful current. In a split-second decision, Nghia came up with the idea to use his heavy-duty drone to pull the children to safety.

“I’d never faced such a situation before. I was terrified - my hands were shaking,” Nghia recalled. “It took me a moment to regain my composure.”

Thanks to his efforts, Nghia successfully pulled both children to shore, one at a time.

Drone rescue: a heart-pounding mission

Earlier that day, a video clip captured the dramatic moment when two children were stranded near Ben Mong Bridge in Ia Tul commune. The footage later revealed the rescuer to be Tran Van Nghia, a 35-year-old farmer from Chu Se commune. His tool of choice was a pesticide-spraying drone.

Seeing the children marooned and the water rising quickly, Nghia knew any delay could be fatal. Though someone had tried to swim out, the current was too strong. Another person attempted to reach them from upstream.

“At that moment, the water was only thigh-deep, but I knew it wouldn’t stay that way,” Nghia said. “So I decided to use my drone.”

Nghia had never used a drone to rescue anyone. Without much time to think, he ran to his car, grabbed a cable, tied it to the drone, and flew it out to the children. He dropped the line for them to grab, and one by one, pulled them in.

The drone could only support around 50 kg, so Nghia had to rescue each child individually.

“When I flew the first boy back, I was trembling the whole time. My biggest fear was that he might panic, look down at the rushing river, and let go,” Nghia said. “To ensure accountability, I asked someone nearby to record the operation, in case anything went wrong.”

Thanks to his quick thinking, the two boys were safely rescued. Another child was picked up soon after by a local resident who paddled a boat out just before the island was submerged by floodwaters.

The drone used in the rescue cost more than 350 million VND (around $14,000) and was purchased by Nghia just over two months ago for pesticide spraying services. Photo: C.N

Nghia shared that he travels to various localities offering drone-based agricultural services.

Pham Van Duc, Chairman of Ia Tul commune, confirmed the rescue and that the children in the video are local residents.

Tran Hoan